Psycho-Legal Perspective on Genetic Discrimination

The fruits of the Human Genome Project (HGP) will soon enable people to have simple tests that provide information about their genetic propensities for various disorders, both mental and physical. This new information could thus give people the ability to make important decisions related to their health; however, it could also result in misinterpretation and misuse by others, such as employers. Ongoing legal and ethical debates suggest that information about people's genetic propensities could result in discrimination, with commentators disagreeing over how effective current jurisprudence is for preventing and/or remediating such violations. This debate begs fundamental questions that psychological research could address, such as "Would employers even utilize genetic information, should they gain access to it?" This article reviews relevant literature on genetics and disability discrimination and outlines some psycho-legal issues and avenues for research.